An elevator car is provided with a toe guard, which is a downward extension of the front wall, i.e. the wall containing the door. The toe guard consists of a plate-like element whose lower part diverges slightly inwards into the elevator shaft from the direction of the front wall, and a supporting structure designed to increase the rigidity of the toe guard. The function of the toe guard is to ensure safe exit of passengers from the elevator car in case it stops between floors e.g. due to a power failure.
A problem with the conventional toe guard is that, especially in the case of fast elevators, when the elevator car is travelling downwards, the toe guard with its inclined shape acts as a booster which strengthens the air current in the space between the front wall of the elevator car and the shaft wall. The velocity of this air current increases faster than that of the elevator car and generates a disturbing noise that penetrates into the passenger space of the elevator car. A low noise level in the passenger space is considered to be one of the most important aspects of passenger comfort. To reduce the noise level, fast elevators are often provided with sound insulations, but it is relatively difficult to damp the noise generated by the air current between the shaft wall and the front wall of the car. This is due to the structure of the car doors, e.g. because the doors are not completely air-tight.